"Marisol" at Penumbra Theatre

Although it premiered over 30 years ago, the play Marisol by Puerto Rican playwright José Rivera feels like it was written for today. It's an absurd and surreal look at a dystopian society in which, among other things, people are dragged from their beds in the middle of the night and hauled away in handcuffs. Something that is actually happening in our country right now with ICE raids in schools, business, and even homes. Theatre Coup d'Etat produced this play back in 2018, but it's even more relevant today, scarily so. Kudos to Penumbra Theatre Company for programming this play this season, in partnership with Teatro del Pueblo, even though they couldn't have known how relevant it would be today when they chose it some months ago. This play requires some effort from the audience as it's not straight-forward or even entirely sensical, but it's beautifully designed, directed, and acted by the team at Penumbra and Teatro del Pueblo. See it at Penumbra Theatre in St. Paul's historic Rondo neighborhood now through November 2.

Something bad has happened in the world, some sort of plague or natural disaster, and the moon hasn't been seen in months. Marisol is an independent young woman from the Bronx who takes the subway into Manhattan every day to work for a company that publishes science books. She receives a visit from her guardian angel, who tells her she can no longer watch out for her because she needs to go to war to depose the old and ill God. The next day Marisol learns that a woman with her name who lives in her neighborhood was murdered. Weird, huh? After this particularly difficult day, her friend and coworker June invites her home, where she meets June's mentally ill brother Lenny. This is when things start going downhill. Everyone ends up on the streets, which have become a disaster area. Marisol searches for June, and meets several interesting people on her journey. A journey that ends back where we began.*

Kay Mercedes as Marisol
(photo courtesy of Penumbra)

Penumbra's president Sarah Bellamy directs the play with just the perfect tone that balances the absurdity of the world with the humanity of the characters; this play is super weird, but also grounded in reality. The excellent cast is led by Kay Mercedes, a Minnesota native who's spent her career on the coasts and is returning home to play Marisol. Her performance is so pure and true, and we really feel for and identify with Marisol in this swirling mess of a world. Bri Patnode plays her friend June, first as a tough protector of her friend, then the roles reverse. Vinecia Coleman is a calm and reassuring presence as the angel, with a wisdom that makes you want to have her in your corner. Playing one or more disturbed people are Paul LaNave, Sara Marsh, and James Craven, leaning into the absurdity but not losing the humanity of their characters.

The Penumbra stage has been totally transformed into this scary world through the combination of set, sound, and lighting design. A sort of mesh wall runs across the middle of the space, sometimes functioning as a scrim for projections of locations, sometimes opening to reveal the debris-filled world behind it. In Act I the world is a little more recognizable, with a bedroom and office set wheeled on, but Act II subsides to total chaos, with projections even onto the brick walls on either side of the stage. Light radiates from squares on the floor, and sound effects including echos or simultaneous dialogue create an eerie effect that makes you want to turn around and see who's there. Costumes start out as a sort of heightened reality, business suits and the like, but then they also get more disturbed with some distressed streetwear (and one incredible fur coat). The entire effect of the design is one of dis-ease, which suits this play so well. (Scenic design by Maruti Evans, sound design by Scott Edwards, lighting design by Marcus Dilliard, projection design by Miko Simmons, and costume design by Matthew LeFebvre.)

Marisol is a disturbing play, especially with the parallels to our current reality. But it ends with a moment of hope, as the people stand up and join together to create a better world. If we're going to get through this difficult era in our nation's history, it's going to have to be together. And the power of theater and art to light the way cannot be overstated.

*Plot summary borrowed from my review of Theatre Coup d'Etat's production.